Another Reason to Go Local? Global Deforestation

Take it from someone who's spent the last year reading nothing but food-related books: if there's a good reason to give up eating a specific thing, I've tried giving it up. I stopped short of not eating plants based on a claim that they, too, might have feelings. But deforestation caused by foods? That's worth a serious look.

This article at Planet Green rounds up seven common foods that contribute to deforestation worldwide—including rice, sugarcane, and palm oil (that wonderful ingredient that makes peanut butter easier to stir).

I've already eliminated a few of the perps on the list (factory farm beef, for instance, or corn-derived processed foods), but I'll have to get creative to combat a few of the others. In many cases, we can all be sure that our food choices don't contribute to deforestation simply by buying them local; for instance, four of the seven foods on this list are available at our farmer's market at some point during the year, and there's likely a local source for two more.

What do you think? Is deforestation a good enough reason to change some of your food habits?